Hand-held electrically powered vegetation trimmers are typically configured with a handle portion, a trimmer head and an intermediate portion that interconnects the handle portion and the trimmer head. The handle portion usually includes a “live” or primary handle having a grip for a first hand of the user and a trigger or other means for actuating the trimmer head. A “dead” or auxiliary handle is also typically provided to provide a grip for the second hand of the user. The auxiliary handle may be coupled to the handle portion or to the intermediate portion. The intermediate portion typically employs a straight member, which may be tubular, through which the wires that couple the handle portion to the trimmer head extend.
Despite the popularity of such designs, we have noted several drawbacks. One such drawback concerns the placement of the vegetation trimmer's center of gravity relative to the handles. More specifically, as the trimmer head usually includes an electric motor, and as the electric motor usually accounts for the majority of the weight of the vegetation trimmer, the center of gravity is typically positioned a considerable distance from the user's hands, thereby providing the vegetation trimmer with a somewhat unbalanced feeling, which could provide some users with the impression that the unit was somewhat awkward and/or uncomfortable to control.
Other drawbacks concern the amount of clearance for the body of the user and the swath of the trimmer head. The horizontal clearance provided by a “straight” intermediate portion reduces relatively rapidly and is therefore more likely to contact the body of the user. To overcome this drawback, the intermediate may be lengthened, which will further negatively affect the positioning of the center of gravity as discussed above. Alternatively, or the user could either operate the vegetation trimmer in a manner that limits the swath of the trimmer head or with their arms extended so as to place the vegetation trimmer relatively further away from their body.
Efforts for mitigating the effect of a relative large distance between the handle portion and the center of gravity include extending the auxiliary handle from the axis of the intermediate portion by a relatively large distance. Several new drawbacks are created by this approach, however. Given the size of the extended auxiliary handle and the costs of packaging, it is usually not practical to factory-install an extended length auxiliary handle, since this would reduce the efficiency with which the unit is packaged and thereby increase packaging and shipping costs.
Another drawback of relatively large auxiliary handles concerns the lever-arm effect that the auxiliary handle generates on the joint at which the auxiliary handle is coupled to the unit. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, large auxiliary handles are not desired, since their length proportionally affects the torque that is transmitted to the joint.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for an improved vegetation trimmer that employs an intermediate that is configured to place the vegetation trimmer's center of gravity relatively closer to the user's hands to thereby better balance the vegetation trimmer.